As we choose spiritual practices for Lent, we might consider the practice of lectio divina, the prayerful reading of Scripture. (See part 1) This slow reflective reading may be done alone or within a group.

The method of lectio divina is often referred to as fourfold: lectio (reading the text), meditatio (reflecting and meditating on the text), oratio (praying from the text) and contemplatio (deep contemplation of the text).

“Reading as it were, puts food whole into the mouth, meditation chews it and breaks it up, prayer extracts its flavor, contemplation is the sweetness itself which gladdens and refreshes.” (Guigo II, Twelfth century monk)

Lectio—Reading

This kind of reading is slow and reflective, focused on absorbing the word itself in a reflective manner. St. Ambrose writes that calm, slow reading enkindles the ardor of prayer.

When doing lectio with a group, it is good to read through a short passage slowly several times, then allow time for silence. Then people in the group say one word or one phrase that struck them. An atmosphere of quiet, calm and peace is important.

Meditatio—Meditation, Reflection

The purpose of meditation is to assimilate the word of God, to allow it to become more and more a part of our hearts. The Jewish theologian and philosopher Abraham Joshua Heschel wrote, “To meditate is to know how to stand still and to dwell upon a word!” In reading the word of God there can be one word or phrase that moves our heart. At the visit of the shepherds at Bethlehem, “Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19)

Whatever speaks to the heart moves us to wonder, think and pray.

Oratio—Prayer

“Prayer is best understood as a dialogue or conversation between God and a person. The ancient practice of lectio takes for granted that we begin by first listening to God speak to us, then after we hear God speak, we respond; sometimes with a word of thanking and blessing God for divine goodness to us…other times with an acknowledgement of our weakness.” (Abbot Gregory Polan, OSB)

Abbot Gregory continues: “What has the sacred word said to me about growing deeper into the life of Christ? What has it said about a more authentic love of my neighbor? Of what has it accused me and called me to personal conversion?”

God’s word begins to call forth from us a reply.

Contemplatio—Contemplation

“Be still before the Lord and wait in patience.” (Psalm 37:7) Reflection on God’s word will lead us to a posture of peace before God. “Contemplation is a movement from darkness to light, from slavery to freedom, from doubt to belief, from uncertainty to hope.” (Abbot Gregory)

Reading a passage from Scripture in a slow reflective manner can be a practice for encountering the mystery of God in the Scriptures.

I close with a favorite prayer, Psalm 23; perhaps you would like to use it for lectio.

The Lord is my shepherd;
There is nothing I shall want.
Fresh and green are the pastures
Where he gives me repose.
Near restful waters he leads me,
To revive my drooping spirit.

He guides me along the right path;
He is true to his name.
If I should walk in the valley of darkness
No evil would I fear.
You are there with your crook and your staff;
With these you give me comfort.

You have prepared a banquet for me
In the sight of my foes.
My head you have anointed with oil,
My cup is overflowing.
Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me
all the days of my life.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell
For ever and ever.

Abbot Jerome Kodell, OSB is a retired abbot of New Subiaco Abbey, Subiaco, AR

Abbot Gregory Polan, OSB is Abbot Primate of the Benedictine Order and resides in Rome

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During Lent it may help to have a prayer in your pocket. One that you can pull out on a moment’s notice. 

A prayer I keep close at hand, and “at heart” is Psalm 23, “A Prayer of David,” commonly called “The Good Shepherd Psalm.” This psalm can become a spiritual resource especially if it arises from the practice of lectio divina. 

Lectio divina literally means divine or holy reading. This is a way of putting on the mind of God. By absorbing the Word of God we let the divine scripture penetrate deeply so that we may be transformed by divine grace…(Abbott Jerome Kodell, OSB) One can ponder the Christian meaning of this psalm from the perspective of John’s Gospel: the Good Shepherd who gives his life for his sheep. (John 10) 

Lectio divina is associated with those who follow The Rule of St. Benedict. However, this practice of reading and praying the Word of God has begun to find a place in the spirituality of many people desirous of reading the Scripture in a reflective and prayerful way. Entire books are now written on the topic along with many articles in periodicals. 

The practice of lectio divina is best done in an environment of silence. (It helps to turn off communication media.) The writings of the major religious traditions emphasize the necessity of silence for coming into communion with God, with the sacred and with oneself. 

The desert was perhaps the earliest place of lectio divina. One can imagine St. Benedict in his cave with the sacred scriptures as his lectio. Today the monk’s cell could be the place. We need a space to listen attentively to the voice of God speaking to us through the divine word. 

The first word of The Rule of St. Benedict is the command to listen. St. Benedict specifies and denotes times during the day for the practice of holy reading and the practice of listening to the Word of God.  This reading and listening to the divine word has the formative effect of awakening in the heart the divine presence which can speak to a person at any moment and in any situation. (Abbot J Polan, OSB)  After reflecting on a passage from scripture it is common for a person to have that portion or word of scripture return to the mind and heart during the day. 

Part two of this article explains the “method” for lectio divina, along with my favorite translation of Psalm 23 the Good Shephard Psalm. Click here to read part two.

We hope you enjoyed this Benedictine Reflection. Learn more about the sisters’ mission and the Year of Beauty by clicking the button below.

The post Lectio Divina: Prayerful Reading of Scripture Part One  appeared first on Holy Wisdom Monastery.

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 Palm Sunday/Passion Sunday homily                                         Lynne Smith, OSB

Christians have long seen Jesus as embodying the suffering servant in Isaiah. Jesus listens to God in prayer, speaks what he hears to sustain others, perseveres in the truth he hears and depends on God’s help in the face of his adversaries. In the Gospel of Matthew Jesus has the tongue of a teacher. He is active teaching and healing and doing the works of God right up until the time of his arrest. And then, he falls strangely silent. In this whole passion narrative, Jesus speaks only twice: once at the beginning before Pilate and once at the end from the cross. Throughout the rest of the questioning, the mocking, the abuse and the crucifixion, the tongue of the teacher is silent. Jesus is passive. Jesus’ passion refers to his passivity.

In Jesus’ passion it is his passivity, his silence, that teaches. In his silence, Jesus teaches who he is and who God is. In the silence, we see the image of a God who would rather suffer, even unjustly, than strike out with any kind violence. In the silence, we see One who stands by the truth of what he knows about God rather than betray his integrity to save himself. In Jesus’ silence, we see One who has emptied himself so completely that a Roman guard recognizes holiness in the broken and spent body of one united to God.

We, too, recognize this holiness in the lives of those emptied of ego. Their lives speak of the sustaining presence of God. Back in 1961, six-year-old Ruby Bridges walked every day through a gauntlet of angry whites shouting slurs and death threats at her as she entered William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans. Psychiatrist Robert Coles who was studying children in the desegregating South in the 60’s had a conversation with her after her teacher noticed one day that Ruby was moving her lips as she walked into the school. Coles asked her to whom she was talking. She told him, “I was talking to God and praying for the people in the street.”

“Why were you doing that, Ruby,” Coles asked. “Well, because I wanted to pray for them. Don’t you think they need praying for?” She said she prayed every morning and every afternoon when she went to and from school. Coles said to her, “But Ruby, those people are so mean to you. You must have some other feelings besides just wanting to pray for them.” “No,” she said, “I just keep praying for them and hope God will be good to them. … I always pray the same thing, ‘Please, dear God, forgive them, because they don’t know what they’re doing.’” (“From the publisher,” by Peter W. Marty in Christian Century, March 29, 2017) In the silence of a six-year-old heart turned to God, God is a powerful sustaining presence.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., when faced with yet another death threat late one night, became overwhelmed by his fears. He felt as if he couldn’t go on. Exhausted, with his courage almost gone, he took his problem to God. Bent over at his kitchen table, he prayed aloud:

“I am here taking a stand for what I believe is right. But now I am afraid. The people are looking to me for leadership, and if I stand before them without strength and courage, they too will falter. I am at the end of my powers. I have nothing left. I’ve come to the point where I can’t face it alone.”

A retelling of this story continues:

At that moment…he experienced the presence of God as never before. “It seemed as though I could hear the quiet assurance of an inner voice saying, ‘Stand up for righteousness, stand up for truth. God will be at your side forever.’ Almost at once my fears began to pass from me. My uncertainty disappeared. God had given me an inner calm,” he wrote.

Three days later when his home was bombed the inner calmness was still there. In thinking back on the experience later he said, “When our nights become darker than a thousand midnights, let us remember that there is a great benign Power in the universe whose name is God…This is our hope… This is our mandate for seeking to make a better world.”

(from King’s The Strength to Love as quoted in The Serenity Prayer Book, by William V. Pietsch)

May we experience this self-giving, sustaining power this week as we enter the silence of Holy Week.

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Sunday Readings:  Isaiah 50:4-9a, Psalm 22; Phil 2:5-11; Mt. 27:11-61

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